Meals ONWheels Vancouver Richmond North Shore
Care BC’s charitable programs focus on supporting seniors, caregivers, and other people at risk of isolation through Meals on Wheels, the Family Respite Centre, and the Community Integration Project.
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March • 2022
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Be a Hero to a Neighbour in Need The Health and Home Care Society of BC (also known as “Care BC”) has operated a Meals on Wheels (MOW) program in Vancouver since 1967. Over our five decades of service to the community, the program has grown to serve the neighbouring communities of Richmond and the North Shore; we also launched a Chinese MOW program in 1996 to meet the region’s changing demographics. Our MOW clients, many of whom are frail, homebound seniors at risk of isolation, receive a hot, nutritious meal and a brief friendly visit from our delivery volunteers. Sixty percent of our clients live alone, with no regular visitors connecting with them. It has always been our mission to enable seniors to continue to live independently in their homes for as long as possible—the COVID-19 pandemic has only increased feelings of anxiety and loneliness among those of our clients who were already struggling. Eleanor is the sole caregiver for her husband, Prod, who
suffered a traumatic brain injury work was shut down. Paolo says: and requires 24-hour care and assistance. She describes how “It’s almost magical—not MOW has helped them: only is it very satisfying to deliver meals on bikes, there “With COVID-19, I have are so many other ‘layers of had to limit his exposure to goodness’—increasing food outsiders, so I’ve been his sole security, combatting social caregiver all this time. Looking isolation, and performing an after him takes so much of my informal safety check.” time that I have had no time for anything else, including We are also extremely grateful shopping for groceries and for the support we receive cooking. Meals on Wheels from generous donors. Care has become a blessing for us. BC subsidizes the cost of each Not only are the meals meal to keep them affordable nutritious and varied but for our clients, many of whom the volunteers who deliver are on fixed incomes. A gift of them have been very kind $250 supports the cost of 125 and supportive. Words are not Meals, including a combination enough to show how grateful my of hot entrees, frozen entrees, husband and I are for MOW’s and sandwich packs. support and assistance.” Being a hero to at-risk seniors in your community is as easy We couldn’t continue our as volunteering a few hours of essential work without the your time or making a generous support of local volunteer financial donation. Will you be a heroes who helped us deliver hero to someone in need? over 130,000 meals last year. We are always looking Volunteers like Lisa and Paolo for volunteers who can help signed up during the pandemic during weekday lunch hours in because some of their in-person Vancouver, Richmond, and the
North Shore. Volunteers who can record checks and COVID speak Cantonese or Mandarin in vaccinations are required. addition to English are particularly needed right now. As we work Visit our website, www.carebc.ca, with vulnerable clients, criminal for more information.
PAOLO DELIVERS MEALS ON WHEELS VIA BICYCLE. © COURTESY OF CARE BC
A Darn Good Mission: Changing Lives Through Yarn RAYE MOCIOIU
Seasoned knitters will tell you that part of the joy of knitting is making something that is uniquely yours, formed by your hands. It’s a great way to get in touch with your inner creativity—and it can also be a great way to support the lives of artisans across the globe. In 2008, Air Force veteran Nicole Snow wanted to learn to knit. Instead of taking a knitting class, she took two of her passions in life—art and helping others—and combined them, creating Darn Good Yarn. She used her experience from college and the Air Force and looked for yarn that could change lives. In love with colour and interesting textures, Nicole discovered that shredded remnants of old saris could lead to fabulous interpretations of something as commoditized as yarn. Nicole took this opportunity, used this trash, and turned it into craft products and other apparel items. From the start, Nicole
NICOLE WITH GIRLS WHO PREPARE YARN FOR SHIPMENTS BHAGULPUR BIHAR INDIA LEFT TO RIGHT MUSKAN ARFA SONAM AND MARIA © 2015 TAYLOR TAZ JOHNSON
wanted to use her business as a conduit to create a globally conscious lifestyle through art. In parts of India and Nepal, where Darn Good Yarn is focused, there are high levels of unemployment. Nicole’s mission was simple: provide phenomenal quality fibres to enthusiasts, while helping the women of Nepal and India become autonomous and self-reliant—the first step to tackling generational poverty. “The problem was that
many of these women were caught in a cycle where, because of their gender, they had no opportunities available to them,” says Nicole. “The women who work for us are hand-selected for their skill and given a wage that not only allows them to survive, but thrive. This affects the rest of their family as well—their children can stay in school and get an education. So, while our yarn and clothing is made from old processes, it provides
the most stability, and in turn, we can pay up to five times the daily rate for a worker in this environment because our core materials are discounted, since they are seconds or trash.” To date, Darn Good Yarn has saved more than two million pounds of material waste from heading into landfills and has turned it back into exotic clothing and craft supplies. As well, Darn Good Yarn has employed over 600 artisans with steady work,
effectively changing their lives by providing sustainable employment and support. “All of the yarns are handmade in small batches and undergo extensive quality control,” Nicole shares. “This also means that all of our yarns are, essentially, mirrors of the amazing women who create them.” For knitters and new crafters alike, Darn Good Yarn’s Yarn of the Month Club is an easy way to experience unique and beautiful yarn that directly supports artisans. “Yarn of the Month is by far our most important product we carry, going back to our mission of creating safe and sustainable jobs alongside carrying worldclass yarn. For every 100 subscriptions, it creates one full-time job! It’s about making beautiful things and doing good at the same time.” When you invest in Darn Good Yarn for your projects, you help a family eat, access proper medical care, and send their children to school—you are crafting a globally conscious life that you can feel great about. ADVERTORIAL
Cool Aid Takes Comprehensive Healthcare on the Road The Cool Aid Mobile Health Clinic, powered by TELUS Health, provides primary healthcare to marginalized people in the Victoria area. The Victoria Cool Aid Society is bringing primary care to underserved people in the Victoria area. Through partnerships with the TELUS Health for Good program and Island Health, the Cool Aid Mobile Health Clinic is a fully equipped clinic on wheels that provides trauma-informed, primary medical treatments, mental health services, supplements, harm reduction supplies and addiction support as well as COVID-19 assessments, testing and vaccinations. The Cool Aid Mobile Health Clinic, one of many clinics operating nationwide as part of the TELUS Health for Good program, is breaking down barriers and improving health outcomes. “Bringing the Cool Aid Mobile Health Clinic to the Victoria region further expands our community health centre model of care and services for those who experience barriers to primary care and services,” said Mary Chudley, director of health and support services at Cool Aid. “Many marginalized communities,
including those who are underhoused or experience homelessness, have not had access to primary care in years or do not have a documented medical history that can be referenced by healthcare practitioners. By facilitating
better continuity of care, these services help those who cannot easily access traditional medical care yet are in urgent need. With the mobile clinic, we can provide primary care to individuals who need complex care. This kind
KAREN LUNDGREN, CLINICAL NURSE LEAD FOR COOL AID, OUTSIDE THE ORGANIZATION’S ROCK BAY LANDING SHELTER. © TELUS
of outreach is already leading to better patient outcomes.” The vehicle is divided into two main areas: the first for patient reception and nursing care; and the second with an examination table and workstation including equipment necessary to provide primary healthcare such as routine testing, contraception, STI treatment, and mental health care and counselling. It is also equipped with TELUS Health electronic medical records technology that allows practitioners to access patient records wherever they are. Locations that the clinic visits throughout Greater Victoria— including several Cool Aid locations, Our Place, Tiny Town, Mustard Seed, the Rainbow Kitchen, and others—have been determined in collaboration with community partners to reach people in need where they are— in parks, shelters, supportive housing locations, soup kitchens, food banks, and on the streets. Staffed by a comprehensive team including physicians, nurse
practitioners, registered nurses and outreach workers, the clinic delivers specialized care to the target population where and when they need it. “By going to our clients instead of asking them to come to us, we get to step into their world and see the many barriers and challenges they are facing that may not be apparent when meeting with them in a more clinical setting,” said Robyn Kyle, Cool Aid Health outreach worker. “Part of what makes outreach workers so crucial, especially in a healthcare context, is that we have the tools to address those barriers and challenges, which inevitably leads to better healthcare engagement and better outcomes.” Since launching in July, the mobile clinic and Cool Aid team have made possible 3,449 encounters to people in the unhoused community—people who might otherwise not have accessed care at all. Donate today at coolaid.org / 250-383-1977
REBUILDING LIVES, ONE STEP AT A TIME Everyone deserves the dignity that comes with home, health, and connection.
Donate today at
coolaid.org / 250-383-1977
